Water Part 20

Job 14:19 NKJV

As water wears away stones, And as torrents wash away the soil of the earth; So You destroy the hope of man.

Job mentions water wearing away stones as he speaks to God while enduring great misery. He misunderstood God but he displayed a little knowledge about nature in his conversation. Because of the constant flow of water over them, rocks on the beach or in a stream are made smooth. The moving water removes their rough edges and produce what we call pebbles. Rough edges on stones make them more harmful than smooth stones.

 Spiritual parallel: There are rough edges in all our lives. The more rough edges we have, the greater the potential of hurting others. In the book of Psalms we find several references to a sharp tongue in the context of people hurting others. Just as natural water helps get rid of sharp or rough edges, the water of the Word and the Spirit can help us get rid of the rough and sharp edges in our lives, particularly our mouths. The speed in which a pebble develops depends on the speed of the current running over it. The greater the force, the faster the pebble is created. If our rough edges seem to take too long to become smooth, we need to increase the force of the Word and the Spirit in our lives. We can increase the force by letting the spiritual water wash us over and over, back to back, and lifting up our voices to forcefully agree with the Word we hear.

Water Part 19

You also gave Your good Spirit to instruct them,
And did not withhold Your manna from their mouth,
And gave them water for their thirst.

The restoration of the wall of Jerusalem was completed under the leadership of Nehemiah. In addition to this great project being completed, there was a spiritual revival among God’s people. Please note that as the Israelites were praising God at a large gathering, rehearsing the goodness of God toward them, someone mentioned that God gave them water for their thirst. Although people pick a variety of liquids when they are thirsty, there is no substitute for water. When Israel was thirsty, God gave them something that would quench their thirst like nothing else.

 Spiritual parallel: When we are thirsty spiritually, when there seems to be dryness in any area of our lives, there is no substitute for the water of the Word and the Spirit to meet the need. We waste time and effort trying to fulfill the thirst in our souls and spirits another way. When we go to God at such a time, He only has one thing to offer – water – the Word and the Spirit. As He did in the wilderness, He still brings water from the Rock (Christ).

Water Part 18

2 Kings 20:20 NKJV

Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah-all his might, and how he made a pool and a tunnel and brought water into the city-are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

It would not be possible to record the entire life of anyone. So when writing about individuals in the Bible, authors chose the highlights. Hezekiah was remembered for designing and constructing a water tunnel to bring water into the city of Bethlehem. He strategized to eliminate a water supply his enemy cold use if he attacked Jerusalem. Meanwhile, Hezekiah made a way to maintain a water supply for his people until the enemy gave up.

Spiritual parallel: Will providing a source of water be in our story? Hezekiah was remembered for his creativity and his good deed in providing a critical resource. The water of the Word and the Spirit is a critical resource in our generation. People are in desperate need. Will we trust God for creativity to provide spiritual water for as many as possible? I pray that as people recall our stories, if they don't have a lot of time, they will mention how we brought "water" to those in need.

Water Part 17

2 Samuel 12:27 NKJV

[27] And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, "I have fought against Rabbah, and I have taken the city's water supply.

Joab was talking about war when he mentioned he had taken the city's water supply. This action would severely hinder the city's ability to defend itself, thus making it easier to defeat.

Spiritual parallel:  In order for the enemy to destroy us spiritually, he must cut off our spiritual water supply. If he can hinder our access to the Word and the Holy Spirit, it will make it easier for us to be defeated. Therefore, we must carefully guard our water supply. We must be vigilant and respond to any attack on our interaction with the Word and the Spirit and fight back to protect our supply. In order for us to stay strong in battle and stay victorious, we must stay spiritually hydrated.

Water Part 16

Deuteronomy 11:4 NKJV

what He did to the army of Egypt, to their horses and their chariots: how He made the waters of the Red Sea overflow them as they pursued you, and how the Lord has destroyed them to this day;

Moses told the younger Israelites how God judged the enemies of Israel and drowned them in the Red Sea.

 Spiritual parallel: Just as God’s people went through the waters of Red Sea to the way that led to the Promised Land, we get to our “promised land” by way of the waters of the Word and the Spirit. On the other hand, what is a blessing to us is judgment to our enemies. By the Word of God and the Spirit of God, those pursuing Israel to destroy them were themselves destroyed. We appropriate the water of God’s Word and Spirit to enter into victory. We use the same water to destroy the plans of the devil.

Water Part 15

Deuteronomy 8:15 NKJV

who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock;

As Moses recounted the stories of God’s goodness to Israel, he pointed out that God brought them water out of the flinty rock. Flint is a hard stone which would make it very hard for anything to pass through it. This made it very obvious that a miracle was taking place. Not only did water come out of a rock, but it came out a rock that was not porous. It was a solid rock.

Spiritual parallel: God can feed us spiritually in the midst of seemingly impossible situations. If we look to Him as our Source, even if the preacher or teacher we are listening to does not seem to be saying much, God can speak to us through him or her. So, when we go to church or some meeting, let us expect to hear from God, not man. I have had God speak to me through a movie that had nothing to do with the Bible or the things of God. I have had the Lord teach me from a scripture I thought was just a technical inclusion and was not meant to teach anything. God spoke through a donkey. We cannot limit God to our traditional ways or religious experiences. I have seen the Spirit of God show up in a situation that was totally surprising to me. I could not credit His showing up to anything I or anyone around me did. May God help us to take the limits off of Him, get Him out of our boxes and let Him be His supernatural self while we just enjoy Him every day.